For those of you unfamiliar with Orlando, it is a great location for a bowl game. However, it is more spread out and extensive than San Antonio and it has way more entertainment options. Here are a few thoughts from my experience on several trips thereover the years. Hope this thread will serve as a place for those with Questions to meet those with Answers.

1. The main tourist zone is along I-4 with Universal Studios on the north, the Convention Center and Sea World on the south, and Disney on the far South.
2. International Drive and Universal Blvd. essentially run parallel to each other and are the two main tourist routes (with trolleys). This area was built to handle tourists and people attending conventions. There are tons of hotels and attractions. https://www.internationaldriveorlando.com/50-ways-to-have-fun/. A new one that I might try is Andretti Indoor Racing (calling out @isufbcurt).
3. The Convention Center for the Cyclones Unplugged event is huge (much bigger than you think and way bigger than it looks). Our event will be big, but take up only a fraction of the facility.
4. The Hyatt Regency for the CF charter is right next to the Convention Center.
5. The Gridiron Club event at Marlow's in Pointe Orlando is just north on International Drive from the Hyatt.
6. There are nice areas of nightlife near, but not in the amusement parts (no admission fee required), such as Universal CityWalk https://www.universalorlando.com/web/en/us/theme-parks/citywalk and Disney Downtown https://disneyland.disney.go.com/destinations/downtown-disney-district/.
7. You can often get free parking if you go to an establishment near the parking garage and get your ticket validated.
8. The Camping World Stadium is north of Universal on I-4 toward downtown. I've heard that there is a lot of construction, so bear that in mind for your transportation. I'll give the details I have in another post.
9. The Amway Center for the Magic/Sixers game is not too far from the Camping World Bowl, so if you go to the game on Friday night, you can scope out the football stadium too.
10. There are tons of things to do outside of the main tourist area. For instance, there is a small man-made lake with waterskiiing pulls and jumps. Or my favorite, go on an airboat ride in an alligator-infested swamp. Get the craziest driver and tip him early in order to have a great time.

Well, that should get the conversation started.

A few CFers are watching football games at Bloodhounds Brewery (about a mile north of Universal Studios). You're welcome to join us.

We need to come up with “Gingers Down” hand signal

Weird lack of compelling games for being this late in the season. There's a handful of games with playoff implications and a bunch of dogs, including the primetime slate:

TNF - Jets @ Ravens. Barf. Good thing we have the CyHawk game tonight.

SNF - Bills @ Steelers. Actually might be a decent game, although I'm kind of wiating for the other shoe to drop with the Steelers and Devlin Hodges. Tomlin has done an incredible job keeping the team afloat, but how long can you hide the third string QB before he gets exposed?

MNF - Colts @ Saints. Please put Indy out of their misery.

The best of the weekend looks to be Bears @ Packers and Texans @ Titans.

A bit late, but I hope it adds to the pre-game assessment of the game. I am jacked up for this and to see Iowa State in a prominent position against a prominent team.

https://cyclonefanatic.com/2019/12/jay-jordan-this-game-matters/

Matt Thomas can shoot the ball: Confirmed

https://cyclonefanatic.com/2019/11/...t-thomas-balling-out-for-the-toronto-raptors/

Link:

https://cyclonefanatic.com/podcasts/football-and-random-things-episode-56/

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IOWA STATE (6-3, 0-0 BIG 12)
VS. IOWA (7-3, 1-1 BIG TEN)
THURSDAY, DEC. 12 | 7 P.M. CST
AMES, IOWA | HILTON COLISEUM (14,384)


Radio: Cyclone Radio Network
Talent: John Walters (pxp); Eric Heft (analyst)
TV: ESPN2
Talent: Jason Benetti (pxp); Dan Dakich (analyst)

Welcome to the pre-Christmas edition of On That Note. A weekly music post from @cyclones500, @CycloneRulzzz and me.

Last weeks offering can be found here: https://cyclonefanatic.com/forum/threads/on-that-note-the-animals-part-3-mammal-mania.253643/

Besides posting a bit early because of the holiday - this week we're going to try something different.

For two reasons:

1. @BoxsterCy when he responds to our threads likes to throw in his personal memory that he associates with the song. I love that!
2. Like the Christmas memories thread that @Angie started on Friday, this time of year does cause one to think about the past.

Hopefully I can satisfactorily explain how this is designed to work. (Whether it WILL or not, we'll see.)

I will kick it off. I will post a song with a story/memory I associate with it. Next someone will post a memory associated with that same song AND post another different song and story/memory. Any followup post can be a memory associated with ANY earlier song as long as the poster also posts a new song and memory.

So eventually there should be dozens of songs to choose from and share a memory - and post another song and memory.

And to kick it off, 500 and Rulzzz will hopefully chime in almost immediately. So there will be 3 songs almost right away.

And since this is kicking off a bit earlier because of the holiday there'll be a few extra days to post. I'll do my best to keep it on the "front page" during the week.

*************
Beach Boys (In My Room)

Working at the Muscatine HyVee, Mid 1970's. One of our employees came up to the pick-up lane to get his groceries. I was working that station. He had the 8-track (Endless Summer) playing. It sure sounded good coming out of the speakers on a warm spring day! At this point the Beach Boys were kind of a forgotten entity. I didn't get the album then but my ISU roommate, a few years later, had it.

When CDs were a new thing I finally acquired a copy on that medium. I remember some friends (slightly older) were visiting and were curious about CD's. To show them how the sound was crystal clear I played for them In My Room. The harp, especially, sounded so clear and to the front.

From Wikipedia: Endless Summer is a compilation album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released on June 24, 1974. A collection of hits from the band's 1962–65 period, Endless Summer was compiled by their old label, Capitol Records, while the Beach Boys were contracted to Reprise Records. Its unexpected success bore immediate consequences for the band's then-progressive musical direction. It revitalized the band's popularity after years of lukewarm sales, but also inspired nostalgia for the Beach Boys' early surfing and hot rod-themed music, repositioning the group as an oldies act.

Four months after its release, the album reached number 1 in the United States and Canada. It was the group's second chart-topping album in the US and returned them to a level of commercial success they had not experienced there since the mid 1960s. The compilation spent 155 weeks on the Billboard albums chart...

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My Christmas Prime Rib turned out damn near perfect. Thought I would share it with the rest of CF. (I originally posted in the Random thoughts thread)

Enjoy!

Before cooking


After Cooking


First Slice. I was holding my breath the whole time.


With rest of meal. Classic white and garlic rosemary bread, mashed potatoes, corn, honey glazed carrots and Apple-Cranberry Walnut Pie all made by me!


Plated and served!

Jarrett Bell of USA Today named Kelechi Osemele to his NFL All-Decade team for the 2010's.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...cade-team-tom-brady-antonio-brown/2680681001/

@BigEastTimeRTT

The Big East wins the Inaugural Big East-Big 12 Battle, 8-2:
W, Georgetown-Oklahoma St.
W, Texas Tech-DePaul
W, West Virginia-St. John’s
W, Marquette-K-State

L, Seton Hall-Iowa St.
L, Butler-Baylor

W, Oklahoma-Creighton
W, Ku-Villanova
W, Texas-Providence
W, Xavier-TCU

https://fightingirishwire.usatoday.com/2019/12/24/camping-world-bowl-officially-sold-out/

They have some nice things to say about us. Hadn't heard this from other sources. Technically, it's sold out on the "initial market" but there are tickets available on the secondary market.

I like this statement: "So there you go, for the first time since Notre Dame played Florida State in the then-Champs Sports Bowl and for now just the second time ever, the Camping World Bowl has sold out."

Anyone in north iowa/southern mn in need of transportation? You can get a round trip flight from rochestor, mn to orlando for $519 on american airlines. Flight leaves tomorrow mid day and lands in orlando late. return flight either saturday after the game at 5:30, or on sunday with multiple options. One stop in chicago both ways. Hopefully someone can take advantage of this pretty good price.

It’s not my preferred beverage but I know it is for some. I don’t want to create a stampede but I Just left the walgreens across from the Hyatt regency where the cyclonefanatic charter is staying. They have six 18 packs of Busch light. It’s not in the cooler. It’s warm. Manager said it’s all they had. I suggested he ask for more or at least put it in the cooler. He didn’t sound impressed.

Just a few things going through my mind as the game approaches.

https://cyclonefanatic.com/2019/12/3-thoughts-48-hours-before-the-camping-world-bowl/

I always think it is fun to look at this. SBJ rounded all of them up in this link.

Camping World Bowl:

■ $400 Best Buy gift card; watch; Herschel backpack with luggage tag

At least that’s what Scott Frost thinks. The loser mentality seems to be setting in hard around Lincoln.

https://www.crimsonquarry.com/2019/...en-schedule-wanted-more-games-against-indiana

We're having a gamewatch for the bowl game at SportClub (750 N. Jefferson St.) in downtown Milwaukee. We have the Bootroom, a private bar room in the back, reserved for the game. I hope for a good turnout of Cyclones!

FB Page of the ISU Alumni of Milwaukee https://www.facebook.com/groups/215613868782045/

PS SportClub will be letting people in at 10 minutes to 11 a.m.

I haven't been there yet, and had no idea that they were now open until a few days ago:
House Divided Brewery
1620 Dows St, Ely, IA 52227

Ely is on the southern end of the bike trail that at least once stretched from Waterloo to Cedar Rapids (discovered in recent years that some of those sections are in desperate need of renovation) and was more recently extended to Ely (supposedly it is "within a few hundred feet of being complete all the way to Solon").

"House Divided" is owned by a couple, one a Cyclone fan, the other a Hawkeye fan, who vow to have the televisions in their brewery/sampling area, equally divided between Cyclone and Hawkeye sports.

Looking at their website (https://www.housedividedbrewery.com/) shows that they have a limited number of their own beers, as well as a few other beers, most of which are brewed by breweries local to Ely, Iowa.

I like the fact that they are in Ely, which will improve my bike ride there (Odie's is a fine small town bar, and the place to head to for food on that end of the trail, but not much for beer selection). Hopefully IF the trail ever is completed to Solon, they won't get bypassed in favor of Big Grove's original location.

If you have visited House Divided, please leave your comments and impressions. All of us who have not visited are curious.

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IOWA STATE (6-4, 0-0 BIG 12)
VS. PURDUE FORT WAYNE (7-7, 0-0 SUMMIT)
SUNDAY, DEC. 22 | 12 P.M. CST
AMES, IOWA | HILTON COLISEUM (14,384)



Radio: Cyclone Radio Network
Talent: John Walters (pxp); Eric Heft (analyst)
TV: Cyclones.tv
Talent: John Walters (pxp); Eric Heft (analyst)

Any events tonight, 12/26, in Orlando for Cyclones. All I can find are events for Friday.

If not is anyone interested in creating a meet up spot for Cyclone Nation to take over?

Link:

https://cyclonefanatic.com/2019/12/for-mike-rose-playing-notre-dame-is-special/

Is anyone aware of any organized game watches in the Des Moines metro?

Haven't been paying attention to weather at all up here in MPLS because it's been so mild. 10:00 news just now said several models are saying a massive storm this weekend in the 16+ inch range for Twin Cities. A couple of other models saying it will be south. Are they predicting **** weather in Iowa this weekend?